Members:
Adam Azra’el – Vocals, Guitar, Percussion
Caiti Laszewski – Flute, Vocals
Michal Sinak – Vocals, Guitar, Whistle, Mandolin, Accordion, Bozouki
Daniel Brakke – Bass, Vocals
Doug Waguespack – Percussion
Fraser Wills – Percussion, Vocals
Rebecca Lynne – Violin, Vocals
Uchenna Chidozie – Cello, Violin, Vocals
Trevor Wiest – Guitar
Hymn like choruses, soaring melodies and devotional beauty are all found in the fantastic new world ensemble The Human Empire. We haven’t seen such ambitious project for a long time. Reminds me of what would happen if The Afro Celts make a reunion with the 80s New Wave band The Dream Academy.Yes this is the album I Am, We Are. Take note of that minimalist inspired artwork featuring a skinhead with a painted face.
The instruments are arranged to highlight the nuances of the recordings. But they are also made to sound powerful especially in the choruses of tracks. This is the same for vocals. The blend of all styles ranging from Celtic, African, Arabic, and Western Classical musical traditions and Rock create a collage that celebrate both the thunderous and gossamer beauty of music.
This is such an amazing feat. With the coming together of over sixty musicians, including the Henry Sibley Orchestra and various students and faculty from McNally Smith College of Music. That and considering that they all came together to record something ‘insane.’ I wonder if they have an idea what would happen if this recording gets into the hands of many listeners. I have no doubt that this will create a spark and will truly be patronized for those who love something exotic.
The lead vocals remind me of the singing style of Glen Phillips of Toad the Wet Sprocket. But at times when the blending of many voices, the atmosphere becomes so dense and explosive, you would think you are witnessing the birth a star.
From the alternative infused Cavalry , the Sting sounding White Light(amazing strings there),Peter Gabriel meets Jars of Clay Phoenix and a lot more along the way. You are definitely in for a sonic ride of your life.
Beau Gray – Vocals, Guitar
Cami Smith – Violin
Bryan Hane – Lead Guitar
Casey Jones – Bass
Vincent West – Drums
Hometown: San Diego CA
Mixing Punk, Americana and the melodic strains of Celtic music: these are the things you can pick up when you listen to all Lexington Field albums. The band nod to both traditional and alternative rock crowd with their unique style and energetic tunes. I am enjoying NO MAN’S WAR for its uplifting quality as a whole. Yes there are awesome tracks like American Crow, Crazy Eyes, Dear Old Friend, Here’s To You, Pioneer and Lady Arlington. I am sure you will have your own personal favorites when you get this album. The official release is on May 28 so watch out for it Celtic music fans.
The strength of No Man’s War relies on both its fast and slow tunes. The ballads are always heart-melting. Beau Gray knows how to wield his fine vocal instrument to move the fist and hearts seamlessly: the power of aggressive tunes and the sentimental ballads. Cami Smith is a master in tying heartstrings with the violin which takes its own stage in this recording. A very expressive instrument from those fine hands. Kudos to Bryan Hane for delivering the power chords and also for making the guitar such an instrument with many shades. I dig drummers and this is why the efforts of Vincent West is hard to ignore. He keeps this recording in one piece. And last but not the least, the grooves master Casey Jones shines in most of the danceholic tracks and yes the album demands multiple plays.
No Man’s War closes with the memorable Bluegrass infused Tumble. ” Two years have passed where are we now.” You know, this is why I love Americana. There is an ample amount of humanity in the style and delivery. The lyrics are always worth reading.
I love No Man’s War. I hope you do too. It seduces a listener to get hold of every Lexington Field release.
Biography
Lexington Field is an American Fiddle Rock band from San Diego, CA. Formed in 2009, they have played hundreds of shows across the United States. In 2011, they released their debut album, “Old Dirt Road”. This was quickly followed by their highly regarded EP,”Poor Troubled Life”, in 2012. Both albums are distributed through New Folk Records based out of Minnesota. Lexington Field is about to release their sophomore full length album, “No Man’s War”, in Spring of 2013. These San Diego Fiddle Rockers have shared the stage with awesome bands such as the Young Dubliners, Old Man Markley, The Mahones, The Tossers, Hoist The Colors, The Ramshackle Army, The Fisticuffs, The Langer’s Ball, Hounds of Finn, Brick Top Blaggers, and many more acts across the country! Lexington Field embraces the best of North American musical elements such as rock, punk, country, bluegrass, Americana and folk and mixes in a fiddle to capture a unique and memorable sound. Along with their high energy live show, they give their fans an amazing musical experience!
It’s a wonderful weekend and I hope you are all taking time to refresh your minds with amazing music, beautiful scenes and good friends. Just as a reminder:
The awesome album from Kevin O’Donnell is now out for those who haven’t bought their copies yet. This is a fantastic album. My aunt was telling me how she can relate to the stories in this recording because her husband was a Croatian immigrant to Australia. Kevin O’Donnell’s sentiments are universal and they speak for all.
More hot stuff:
Artist: Maxim Cormier
Album: Same
The debut album by Max Cormier forms a cuspate between traditional and original tunes. He does this with seamless transition and freshness.
Band:Iona
Album: Silver
Silver has eleven tracks of rich musicality that will continue to echo in your soul long after the CD has been removed from the player. The pieces are woven in such a way that the album sounds seamless
Artist: Aisling Jarvis
Album: Romeo and Juliet
These are all solid tracks with their own merits and styles. Her musical style is her own with a few nods from adult contemporary pop/rock, traditional Irish and folk.
Members: Damien McCarron – Vocals, Guitar
Mike Nile – Vocals, Guitars, Mandolin, Harmonica and Electronic Bagpipe
Renee Fine – Fiddle/Violin
Aaron Haywood – Bass
Francesco(Cheech) Mannone – Drums
Guesting on occasion:
Neale Heywood – Guitar
Ryan Bunnell – Guitar
Tracks
1. Whiskey Tonight/2. Ceili Mor /3. It’s You /4. Hold On to You /5. Story Rory /6. Lady Jane /7. New Lease On Life /8. Man of All Seasons /9. Doin’ Fine/10. Roll This Stone/11. The Cure/12. Dreaming of You/13. Big Storm Rising/14. Dublin Day
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Work is the curse of the drinking class according to Oscar Wilde. For a moment The Indulgers, a band of Irish rockers based in Colorado treat us to songs that span generations, styles and yes drinking tables. Fine musicianship, witty lyrics and the lead singer’s beautiful vocals are among the things that you will encounter when you listen to the band. Whiskey Tonight is the band’s best effort to date. It’s also their seventh studio album.
The album begins with Whiskey Tonight. Notice the aural-stitching- fiddle- extravaganza courtesy of Renee Fine. The foot stomping beat is one of the band’s signature sound along with the rocking chorus of instruments that will rock your socks off. Ceili Mor has tight harmonies and amazing bagpiping there. This reminds me of a Celtic war music. It’s You insures to draw a smile with its playful melodies and catchy chorus. As lead singer Damien McCarron croons ” It’s you” makes you visualize the smile in the song.
Hold On to You has an echo of the Dubliners which combines the Celtic warlike atmosphere of the second track. Rockin’ sweetness greets us with Story Rory in the vein of Thin Lizzy. I kind of like the sound effect of the crowd shouting “Rory” as if in an arena. Very glam. Lady Jane is one of those narrative ballads which calls to mind the reinterpretation of The Highwayman by Loreena McKennitt. It has that Spaghetti Western Feel.
New Lease On Life is a straight ahead Celtic rocker. The talents of Aaron Haywood on bass and Francesco (Cheech) Mannone on drums really shine. Man of All Seasons charms its way into your debonair heart. Mike Nile played around five instruments in this recording. The guitars in this track are lovely! It’s fiddling heaven once again with Doin’ Fine (which is the only instrumental track in the album). Drums, bass and guitars do their wonderful stuff here. Adventure and soliloquy inhabit the ocean of Roll This Stone. I love the use of vocal effects where Damien’s voice sounds like it’s coming from an old AM radio broadcast. The Cure takes us into the subject of legalizing the use of marijuana for medical purposes. I’ve seen a video of this a few months back but I had no idea it would be part of Whiskey Tonight. I love the tight vocal harmonies and harmonica.
Dreaming of You is easy to sing along with. Big Storm Rising recalls the Celtic warlike atmosphere of the second track. The use of power chords and minor scales give this track a somewhat metallic edge. Dublin Day closes this amazing album. The soaring string parts and fast but steady rhythm makes this one of the most unforgettable closing track for an album. I love closing tracks and this one satisfies to the max. Here’s an interesting trivia: Neale Heywood, who has occasionally joined them on stage, is also in Fleetwood Mac and Lindsey Buckingham’s band. He plays on all seven of their CDs. Ryan Bunnell also joins them on stage/studio on guitar as guest musician on occasion.
Whiskey Tonight channels the energy of Celtic rock with smart pop appeal. The album is so infectious it is tragic not to own it.
The band’s bio:
Add up well over a thousand shows, tours across the U.S. and Ireland, numerous festivals, town concerts, fairs, pubs and theatres, and you have fourteen years in the life of Colorado’s Celtic rock pioneers, The Indulgers.
The Indulgers, a Celtic rock band with a unique western/americana twist, hail from Boulder and Golden, Colorado USA, but their musical roots and influences can be found in Ireland.
It began with The Indulger’s first song “In Like Flynn”, written and recorded thirteen years ago – which garnished awards from “Just Plain Folks” for best celtic song of the year as well as the CD receiving best celtic album of the year. Now over a decade later The Indulgers continue to push forward with new and exciting original celtic rock music. The Indulgers are working on their upcoming 7th CD “Whiskey Tonight” releasing the first single and video… “Whiskey Tonight” soon followed by the second single and video “Ceili Mor” (The Big Dance), a song written in Gaelic with a video that was inspired by Th’ Gatherin’ Festival in Wakeeny, Kansas where clan warriors gather to compete each year.
“Whiskey Tonight” follows The Indulgers 6th CD “Out In The West”, (nominated for best celtic album in 2009 by Just Plain Folks) featuring songs inspired by the western legends, culture, and experiences of the Irish/Scottish immigrants, who came to America bound for a new life in the west.
The Indulgers continue to create and develop an exciting blend of celtic rock/western/folk rhythms that move and inspire, delivering energetic live shows from San Francisco to New York City and abroad, including a successful tour of Ireland making arrangements with a professional travel agency to bring along friends and fans interested in touring with the band. Flights, hotels, bus, food, and a site-seeing tour guide was included in the package trip. The band perfomed in Ennis with Johnny Fean guitarist and vocalist of Horslips, a band considered to be one of the true pioneers of celtic rock music, and after a live radio broadcast in Kilkenny performed at the famed Cleere’s Theater, ending with a livley night in Damien’s hometown Howth, a beautiful fishing village just outside of Dublin. Damien’s family, friends, and locals joined the “Ireland Tour” crew for a memorable final night performance in Ireland. The band made many new friends and contacts on the journey and look forward to returning to Ireland as soon as possible bringing along another bus full of adventure seekers.
When not touring The Indulgers can always be found playing in their home pub Conor Oneill’s in Boulder, or at Scruffy Murphy’s Irish Pub in Denver, along with several other wonderful Irish pubs and venues along the rocky mountain front range.
For BOOKING INFORMATION contact THE INDULGERS at 303 949-7784 or dmccarro@comcast.net or visit www.shamrocker.com
World Music Award Winners
(Westword 1999, 2008 & 2010)
Irish Music Association Nominee 2009
Five times JPfolk Music Awards Nominees
(Winners Ethnic CD 2000 – In Like Flynn)
(Winners Celtic Song 2000 – In Like Flynn)
(Nominated Celtic CD 2005 High Road to Heaven)
(Nominated Celtic CD 2009 Out In The West)
(Nominated Celtic Song 2009 When We Were Young)
“World Class Music” – KBCO Radio
“Everyone’s favorite Irish band”
– Rocky Mountain News
“Denver’s Shamrockingest band”
– The Denver Post
It’s almost weekend. I hope you are all fine and not feeling sick like me. Ok now, I have links that are posted on the facebook fanpage of The Celtic Music Fan and I think they are worth a mention here:
Here’ s a shout out from Trudy Carroll: Today lets help support mental health services for young people and #WalkInMyShoes day @WIMS2013
This one was mentioned by Jeremy Poitin : “More great music from the English folk revival scene – Arlet”
Here is one band from Belgium playing Celtic music. They call themselves: Celtiquez-vous
There comes a time when you just want a single type of instrument to stand up. And also everything that’s composed around and about it. This is the case of The Barbarian Pipe band. Pure bagpipe richness dipped in spices and good to the heart. And the music comes big drums. Of course loud music like this needs something to set the balance.
Be warned. This is loud. For those who expect something sweet and gentle would rather be somewhere else. But if you like your sound loud , hot, kicking and enveloping then Defecatio Imperatrix Mundi is your thing. best played outside with bonfires, friends around and hardcore Celtic partying.
My picks are Ruvida because of its warlike energy amidst its tribal beauty. Those pounding the drums really know how to make your brain heat up with primal appreciation. in Nutri-Ego we get a gong like sound with a little ‘broadcast feed.’ There are other tracks worth noting but I really don’t pay attention to the title because once it starts you just get lost to the sounds. A true charmer o an album for those who want their bagpipes to shine like crazy diamonds!
Bio:
Biography
The booming music of Barbarian Pipe Band overwhelms audiences of all Europe since 2001 (see the band’s CV).
Archaic sounds and modern arrangements solve space and time into powerful trance, wild dancing and deep emotions. Playing on stages, streets, theaters, churches, feasts, motor gatherings, weeding parties, rock festivals these five musicians fit everywhere from medieval-folk to metal-rock contests.
Barbarian Pipe Band propose two types of shows. Amplified or acoustic.
Acoustic show can be on stage or everywhere.
The amplified one has to be on stage and is followed by their own sound engineer.
Both shows may be enriched by live visual performance.
Hello friends. Weekend is here. How are you doing? Life has been hectic here. There’s rain too.Yay!
Ok first of all I want to give a shout out of congratulation to Breton singer/songwriter Dom Duff who released his album today called Babel Pow Wow. A review will follow soon. I love this project because I’ve followed this while it was being created and even sent Dom videos for his use to promote the album. Again if you see this album, have a listen and buy it. It’s really a wonderful effort. Here’s the link about the album: http://www.coop-breizh.fr/cd-et-telechargement-5/telechargements-10/chansons-voix-bretagne-260/cd-dom-duff-babel-pow-wow-5093/zoom-fr.htm
Picture of the day:
Click for bigger image
...here’s my view of what will be the biggest crowd of me life … 2000 odd LA downtowners. Onstage in a couple of hours. Supporting Dropkick Murphys and their crazy punk fans! -Andy Slim Black
Here’s an EPK to remind you of this week’s featured band Enter the Haggis
Introducing an amazing Canadian artist, A German record label, Album Review, Loreena McKennitt and Picture of the day.
“It was kind of cool to work the sound board for him, because my dad said that when he was in university Terry used to play upstairs in the student union building. Another really cool thing is that the choir I sang in, did one of his songs a few years ago but I didn’t know who he was so I didn’t realize it until he started playing the song. He sounded so good live.”-Layne Greene
Ever wonder how I got my fresh ideas for this site? Yes, I have good friends whom I spend hours and hours discussing musical stuff. So, apart from getting direct messages from bands themselves, I also get word of the mouth from this or that who knows this or that.
After one song I warmed up to Terry Kelly right away. Fans of Dave Gunning will love his music and yes he is also Canadian! You hear different influences in his music ranging from Bluegrass, Irish to Pop rock. In My Father’s House (the video you see above) has an amazing fiddle part and the video is also well done. His voice combines strength and tenderness. The music lifts the soul, casting your burdens aside. So, to all of you who are having a hard time, those who are trying to heal from a broken heart or a terrible situation, the music of Terry Kelly is a perfect remedy. Not too heavy on the sugar, good calorie count and full of goodness.
Merlin’s Nose records giving you ambient, pagan folk and other interesting releases
Those who love ambient sound with something medieval and folk then Merlin’s Nose Records have great stuff for you. The company is based in Germany and it sells records in various format. These tracks you hear are just samplers of the great things to come. Visit their site to browse through the catalog. http://www.merlins-nose.com/index_1.htm
Music sampler:
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Album Review: Mickey Harte: Forward to Reality
The music of Mickey Harte is easy to the ears and it goes down smoothly. There are enough hooks to appeal to both pop and rock listeners. His voice has the characteristics as Rod Stewart and Sting or a combination of both. The album booklet has a nice biography that will explain how this recording came into reality. It also shows black and white photos of the studio with the artist and crew during recording sessions. The album has 13 catchy pop rock songs , artfully crafted but they also made sure to retain that raw energy courtesy of sound Engineer Dave Hill.
The songs are typical adult alternative music that talks about relationships, the tragedy, redemption of love and things in between. There are folksy sensibilities in songs like Bordertown, Living in our town,Unstoppable train and my personal favorite Broken Love. Mickey Harte has a voice possessing a wide range of expression and layers. In I like the way you think, his voice go really deep and sensual in a Chris Isaak croon.
So what about the instruments? Expect to hear Hanson guitars, alto trombone and the usual mix of keys, bass and drums. The recording and mastering took place inside 1 Bit Studio in Chicago IL. Interesting results happen when artists from the Emerald Isle let American sound engineers do the final touches. All in all Forward to Reality is one strong album that is poised to satisfy a wide range of listeners from the musical spectrum.
Celtic Music Fan 